The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1887-01-27

"And take the only man we have, and
leave ycu alone?" returned Kate slowly.
sNo!o
"There are the Chinese field hands, said
Mrs. Hale; "you must correct your ideas,
and really allow them some humanity, Kate.
John says they have a very good compulsory
school system, in their own country, and can
read and write y
"That would be of little use to you here
alone if-if"--Kate hesitated.
"If whatf' said Mrs. Hale, smiling. care
you thinking of Manucl's dreadful story of
the grizzly tracks across the fields this morn,
ings I promise you that neither / nor
mother, nor Minnie, shall stir out of the house
until your return, il you wish It,"
II wasn't thinking of that" said Kate;
though don't belieyothe beating OF gong
and the using OF strong language is the best
way to frightcn a grizzly from the house.
Besides, the Chinese are going down the river
to-day to funeral, or a wedding, or feast
of stolen chitkens-they're all the same-and
won't be here"
ssThen take Manuel, = repeated Mrs Hale.
Eve have the Chinese servants and Indian
Molly In the house to protect us from Heaven
knows what! I have tho greatest confidence
in Chy-Lce as warrior, and in Chinese war
fare generally. One has only to bear him
pipe In time of peace to imagine what terror
he might become in war time. Indeed, any,
thing more deadly and oul-harrowing than
that love song he sang for us last night can
not conceive. But really, Kate, am net
afraid to stay alone. You know what John
says: we ought to be always prepared for
anything that might happen"
""My dear JOSIE" returned Kate, putting
her arm around her sisters waist, ~ AM per-
fectly convinced that IL Three-fngered Jack,
or Two-toed Bill, or even Joaquin Murictta
himself should step, red handed, on that We.
randa you would gently invite him to take q
cup Of tea, inquire about the state of the
road, and refrain delicately from uny alI,i.
sons to the sheriff. But sha'n't tuks
Manuel from you. really cannot under.
take TO look after his morals at the station,
and keep him from drinking aguardiente
with suspicious characters at the bar It Is
true he kisses my hand III bis speech, even
when 1t Is thickcst. and offers his back to RE
for horse block, but I think / prefer the
sober and honest familiarity of even that
Pike county landlord who Is satisfied to say,
Jump, girl, and I'll ketch YEP"
81 hope you didn't change your manner to
either of thcm for that" said Mrs. Hale with
faint sigh, "John wants to he good friends
with them, and they are behaving quite
decently lately, considering that they can't
speak grammatical sentence nor know the
use of fork"
Sand now the man puts on gloves and a
tall hat to come here OH Sundays, and the
woman won't call until you've called first,
retortcd Kate; perhaps you call that im-
proyement. The fact is, Josephine con
tinued the young girl, folding her arms de-
murely, 1--WE might as well admit it at once
these people don't like u.s."
that's impossible!" said Mrs. Hale, with
sublime simplicity. "You don't like them,
You mean"
Il like them better than you do, Josie, and
that's the reason why feel itand you don'tn
She checked herself, ard after pause re-
suned in lighter tone: "No; sha'n't 20 to
the station; Ill commune with nature to-day,
and won't take any humanity in mine, thank
YOU as Bill the driver says. Adios."
II wish Kate would not use that dreadful
slang, even in jest" said Mrs. Scott in her
rocking chair at the French window, when
Josephine re-cntered tho parlor as her sister
walked briskly away. u am afraid she is
being infected by the people at the station.
She ought to have change" -..-. ~
II was just thinking" said Josephine, look,
ing abstractcdly at her mother, that would
try to get john to take her to San Francisco
this winter. The Careys arc expected, you
know; she might visit them"
. 'I'm afraid If she stays here much longer
she, won't care to see them at ell. She seems
to care for nothing row that she ever liked
before" returned the old lady oninously.
Meantime the subject of these criticisms
was carrying away her own reflections tight
ly buttoned up in her short jacket, She had
driven back her dog Spot-another one of her
disillusions, who, giving way to his lower
nature, had once killed q sheep-as she did
not wish her Jacques-like contemplation of
any wounded deer to be inconsistently inter-
rupted by fresh outrage from her COM
panion. The air was really very chilly, and
for tho first time in her mountain experience
the direct rays of THE sun seemed to be shorn
of their power This compelled her to walk
more briskly than she was conscious of, for
in less than an hour she came suddenly and
breathlessly upon the mouth of the canyon or
natural gateway to Eagles Court. d..
To her always a profound spectacle Of
mountain nIaGni6cence, it seemed to-day a.
most terrible in Its cold, strong grandeur.
Tho narrowing Pass was choked for mo.
in.nt between two gigantic buttresses OF
granite, approaching each other SO closely at
their towering submits that trees growing
their branches and pointed the soaring
Gothic arch of stupendous gateway. s;hc
raised her eyes with quickly beating heart
She knew that the interlacing trees above
her were as large as those she bad just quit
ted; she knew also that the point where they
met was only half way up the cliff, for she
had once Sazed down upon them, dwiDdled
to shrubs from the airy summit; she knew
that their shaken cones fell thousand feet
perpendicularly, or bounded like shot from
the SCARED walls they bombartled. She re-
mcmbered that one of these pines, dislolged
from its high foundations, had once dropped
like portcullis in tho aichway, blocking the
pass, and was only carried aftcrward by as
sault of steel and fire. Bending her head
mechanically. she ran swiftly through the
saadowy passage, and halted only at the be-
ginning of the ascent on the other side.
It was here that the actual position, OF tho
plateau, SO indefinite Of approach, began to
be realized. 1t now appeared all independent
elevation, surrounded on three sides by
gorges and water courses, 50 narrow as to bc
overlooked from the principal mountain
range, with which it was connected by long
canyon that led to the ridge. Attic outlet
of this canycn-in bygone ugcs a mighty
fiyer-it had the appearance of having been
slowly raised by the diluvium of that river,
and tho debris washed down from above--a
suggestion repeated in miniature by the arti-
fetal pluteaus Of excavatcd sol raised before
the mouth of mining tunnels IN the lower
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